1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to encoding for disk drives and, particularly, to an improved trellis code for an extended partial response with maximum likelihood (EPRML) channel.
2. Description of the Related Art
In order to achieve higher recording densities, designers of magnetic recording channels have switched from analog peak detection techniques to sampled data detection techniques. In sampled data detection systems, the readback signal is filtered and sampled at a channel rate of 1/T, where T is the duration of a channel symbol. One such technique is referred to as extended partial response maximum likelihood (EPRML). The discrete time transfer function of an extended partial response channel is (1+Dxe2x88x92D2xe2x88x92D3), where D represents a unit time delay operator with unit-time T. Thus, the noiseless output of the extended partial response channel is equal to the input signal minus a version of the input signal delayed in time by 2T, minus a version of the input signal delayed in time by 3T and plus a version of the input signal forward in time by T. In an EPRML system the output of the noisy partial response channel is sampled at the channel rate and detected using a maximum likelihood Viterbi detector.
Modulation codes are used to generate inputs to EPRML channels to increase detectability of the recorded bit sequences. With such codes, it is desirable to decrease the maximum number of consecutive zeroes and to maximize the minimum number of transitions per code word. Further, it is desirable to minimize the error propagation due to EPRML minimum distance channel errors.
Additionally, in order to achieve higher recording densities, it is desirable to have as efficient a code as possible. Generally, code efficiency is expressed in terms of a rate, which is the ratio of the number of input bits to be encoded to the number of output bits in the resulting code word. It is desirable to have the rate approach unity.
A first trellis code according to the present invention is a rate 24/26 trellis code with three (3) bytes error propagation due to EPRML minimum distance channel errors, a minimum of six (6) transitions per code word and a maximum of twelve (12) consecutive zeroes. A second trellis code according to the present invention is a rate 48/51 trellis code, derived from the first trellis code. The second trellis code has four (4) bytes error propagation due to EPRML minimum distance channel errors, a minimum of twelve (12) transitions per code word and a maximum of twelve (12) consecutive zeroes. A third trellis code according to the present invention is a rate 48/51 trellis code with four (4) bytes error propagation due to EPRML minimum distance channel errors, a minimum of fourteen (14) transitions per code word and a maximum of eleven (11) consecutive zeroes.